Mobile devices such as cellular telephones, smart phones, GPS systems, and cellular-enabled personal computers have become very common and very powerful. This combination of ubiquity and capability has created an ongoing demand for even more capable devices and even more complex and enhanced applications.
Part of the power and capabilities of mobile devices are based on the existence of various infrastructures such as communication networks provided by mobile telephone operators. Such networks enable not only cellular communication links, but they also support “basic” services such as time keeping and access to the public telephone network. Other infrastructures include the United States Government operated global positioning system (GPS), which enables easily accessible position sensing, and ultra-accurate time signals that can be used by communication networks and mobile devices to synchronize signals and operations.
The power and capabilities of mobile devices are also based on using fast, powerful semiconductor devices such as very large scale integrated (VLSI) chips, their supporting components such as resistors, inductors, capacitors, and antennas, and software development and support tools. Such enable the development and use of powerful application software (“Apps”) that can run on mobile devices to implement various features.
State-of-the-art mobile devices, sometimes referred to as smartphones, use the available infrastructures, devices, and software to implement a wide range of built-in features and capabilities. For example, communication ports, touch screen displays, keyboards, on/off sensors, compass orientation sensors, accelerometers, magnometers, light sensors, proximity sensors, cameras, timers, microphones, audio outputs, memory card readers, internal memory, specialized software, GPS, and capabilities such as programmability, identifying cell towers, ascertaining cell tower signal strengths, identifying WiFi networks, and determining battery levels (strength).
Much of the capabilities of mobile devices are implemented using specialized software applications, referred to hereinafter as “apps” that extend the basic features of mobile devices. Apps are available to enhance telephone communications, electronic texting, data communications, social networking, calendars, alarms, memo and note recording, GPS navigation, location tracking, music (MP3) and video (MP4) playback, video calling, conference calling, movie playback, picture taking and sending, games, emails, audio and video downloading, internet access and browsing, specialized advertising, short range communications such as Bluetooth™, mobile banking, instant messaging and the ever-popular specialized ringtones.
The immense power, speed, and capabilities of mobile devices can at times become breathtaking. But, mobile devices have so much capability and power, they at times become so burdensome and intrusive that their use is legally restricted. For example, many states have implemented laws that restrict the use of mobile devices when driving. At other times a user may decide that the use of a mobile device is not warranted. For example, some drivers would rather not use a mobile device when driving, even if such is legal. At other times some users may not wish to be interrupted. However, most users would like to know who called even if they do not wish to actually answer a call.
To assist users in avoiding illegal driving activity related to mobile devices, and to assist other users from being distracted, a company, Location Labs, has developed a “Safe Driving” product for smart phones that automatically detects when a user is driving, and that automatically sets the mobile device into a “Driving Mode” which disables most texting and calling features, sends all incoming calls directly to voicemail, and hides text messages while driving. In emergencies, the “Driving Mode” can be overridden but, if overridden, a text message or an e-mail can be sent to a selected party (such as a parent). This “Safe Driving” product has proven itself to be a useful feature that enhances safety.
Some users may want to automatically “answer” an incoming call and send a message even if they cannot or will not personally handle the incoming call. The solution to the conflict of answering without answering is the auto responder.
An auto responder is a computerized system that automatically responds to incoming signals. Auto responders have proven themselves over the years to be very useful in automatically addressing problems with e-mails. For example, the rather basic automatically generated response from a service provider that an email could not be sent is one type of auto responder.
However, auto responders have proven themselves useful in other contexts such as automatically answering phones and responding with messages such as “X is not available and will return on Monday, please leave a message.” Auto responders have also been used by marketers to leave automated messages while collecting phone numbers and the times of incoming calls. Later, pre-planned messages can be sent to the collected phone numbers.
While auto responders are known and have been used successfully, in the context of mobile devices the use of auto responders has been more limited. Mobile device auto responders that send “canned” messages in response to an incoming signal are known. For example, the foregoing Location Labs “Safe Driving” product when in “Driving Mode” can send an auto-response to alert an incoming caller that the call recipient is unavailable. However, enhanced mobile device auto responders that make use of the power of modern mobile devices would be useful.